


The Art of Communication

by My_Own_Infinity



Category: Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: Awkward Carlos, Awkward Cecil, Cecil is not a scientist, Cute boyfriends are cute, Fluff, Just a bunch of cecilos fluff, M/M, Pre-Live Show: Condos, autistic!Carlos, cecilos - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-25
Updated: 2014-06-25
Packaged: 2018-02-06 03:13:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1842223
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/My_Own_Infinity/pseuds/My_Own_Infinity
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After a dinner date gone wrong, both Cecil and Carlos learn a lesson on the importance of communication in a healthy relationship.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Art of Communication

Carlos loved science. Cecil was perfectly aware of this, and he loved it, because he loved Carlos. And it wasn’t like Cecil had anything _against_ science; he enjoyed hearing about it and he had always been interested in the concepts (even if he never understood them). And it wasn’t like Carlos wasn’t a smart man, because he was. There were just some things he didn’t understand.

For example, he seemed to have a hard time grasping that sometimes Cecil wanted to talk about things that _weren’t_ science.

Cecil pondered this as their “conversation” about some sort of physics concept reached the half-hour mark. It was a Saturday night – the time that Carlos had deemed their scheduled date night – and apparently one of Carlos’ most recent experiments had completely disproven someone’s theory of something-or-other. Honestly, Cecil had long since stopped listening. Carlos had launched into a rapid-fire explanation the instant he entered Cecil’s car, and continued all the way to the restaurant, pausing only to order and once to comment on the taste of the food. Now Cecil was almost finished eating, and _gods,_ how much was there to say about one little experiment? _Ooh, science. So what?_ Cecil thought bitterly, and then immediately felt guilty. Carlos had every right to get excited about things that interested him, and he deserved Cecil’s support. Trying to recover from his brief lapse of good-boyfriendness, Cecil sat up straight and looked at Carlos, trying to give him his full attention.

“Now, granted, Night Vale almost constantly defies the laws of physics,” Carlos said, shoveling piles of food into his mouth as if he hadn’t eaten in days. Cecil tried not to wince.  “But this is _Einstein._ And if I can prove to my boss that I’m making significant progress in my experiments, she might continue our funding! Are you going to finish that?”

Cecil had been concentrating so hard on paying attention that it took him a few moments to register that Carlos had asked him a question. “Oh! Um, no. I’m done.” He pushed the plate towards Carlos, who didn’t so much as glance at it.

“Good. So, are we done, then?”

“Yes, I think so. I can pay, if you want.”

“Okay.” Carlos chattered on as Cecil – for the third Saturday in a row – found himself performing the necessary blood sacrifice and paying for the meal with no help from his boyfriend.

They got into the car (Carlos now giving Cecil a very detailed explanation of the differences between the older Star Treks and the newer ones) far earlier than expected, but Cecil found that he was growing rather exhausted.

“Of course, that’s _nothing_ compared to the change in Doctor Who –”

“Yeah, I’ve been noticing some changes in _my_ life, too,” Cecil said, pointedly trying to draw the conversation away from Carlos. “My newest intern, Fatima – or, no, I think Kelly’s the intern now – has been acting very _strange_ recently. Ever since the ban on bloodstone circles, they not only clutch their head and _scream_ in ancient tongues at the mention of tax returns – which is _obviously_ perfectly normal – but their eyes have also stopped _glowing_ all the time. Maybe they’re sick or something. I’ve asked, but they always just _stare_ at me, wide-eyed and slack-jawed, moving their hands and feet in some ancient, unknowable rhythm as the air around them hums ominously. It’s really _weird._ ”

Carlos gave a quick, distracted nod. “I can run a test on that later, if you want. But anyway, I really think that the continuity of Doctor Who has decreased over the past four years…”

Unbelievable. Could Carlos really not see how inconsiderate he was being? Or…Or was he trying to send a message? Was he – Cecil’s stomach clenched – was he trying to break things off? Cecil slowed to a stop in front of Carlos’ house, not even bothering to listen anymore. Oh gods, that was what this was, wasn’t it? He had been distancing himself all night because he was planning on breaking up with him. Would he do it now? Was this it? Heart pounding, hoping he was wrong but almost positive he wasn’t, Cecil closed his eyes, finding that he couldn’t bear to look at his boyfriend.

“Cecil? Is there something wrong?”

“Look,” Cecil said, “if…if you don’t want to… _be_ with me, I understand. But just _tell me,_ okay? Don’t try to make it easy on me, because it will only make this worse. Please.”

He had expected an apology – confirmation that they were over – but instead, when Carlos spoke, his voice was soft, confused. “…Don’t want to be with you? Cecil, what are you _talking_ about? Of _course_ I want to be with you.”

Cecil’s eyes opened to see Carlos staring at him, his facial expression kind and curious and innocent. Carlos wasn’t going to break up with him, Cecil realized. Carlos loved him, and was just… _what_? “But…you’ve been so distant lately, you never ask me questions about me or how I’m doing, you didn’t offer to pay for the food – you never even asked me how my day was!” He felt his eyes begin to fill with tears. A blurry Carlos shifted in his seat.

 “Cecil…” Carlos rested his hand on Cecil’s knee. “I had no idea. Why didn’t you tell me you felt like this?”

“Y-You never gave me a chance,” Cecil sniffled. And before he could help himself, he blurted out, “All you ever want to talk about is your stupid science!”

Carlos’ hold on Cecil’s knee loosened, and Cecil could practically feel the hurt look on his face. “I was excited. I thought you would be excited too.”

Taking a few deep breaths to steady himself, Cecil took Carlos’ hand in his and squeezed lightly. Carlos didn’t squeeze back. “Carlos, I _love_ sharing your enthusiasm, but you know that I don’t understand you when you talk about science.”

“Not about the science, Cecil.” Cecil blinked, surprised. Carlos continued, sounding a bit wounded. “Night Vale is a scientific anomaly, but very few of the things that make Night Vale unique can be represented through equations. Frankly, the stuff here is unbelievable.” Carlos’ thumb stroked the back of Cecil’s hand.  “Cecil, I’m a research scientist. I can stay here as long as I give my bosses results, and I haven’t been able to find any documentable data for months. My funding was stopped a few weeks ago, and ever since then I’ve been relying on my personal savings to keep the lab running for as long as I can. I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to worry, but my money... well, it’s not enough. I’ve been living on scraps and three-week-old leftovers because I can’t even afford food.” Eyes alight with enthusiasm, Carlos gave Cecil that bright, eager smile he loved so much. “But disproving relativity – that’s huge! Enough for me to regain my previous funding, and maybe a little bit more if I’m lucky. Definitely enough for me to stay. And I want to stay, because I love it here. Because I love you,” Carlos added shyly. “That’s why I was so excited.”

“Carlos,” Cecil said, pulling him in for a gentle kiss. “Wonderful Carlos, why didn’t you tell me this earlier?”

“I did. At dinner.” The wounded look was back. “You weren’t listening.”

 _Oh._ That must have been what Cecil had missed when he was complaining and being an _awful boyfriend._ “Carlos, I am so, so sorry. Can you forgive me?”

“There’s nothing to forgive, Cecil. You’re right –  I can be inconsiderate sometimes. I get excited about things, and I just…forget about everything else. Including you. And I shouldn’t do that. And I’m sorry. I honestly don’t realize I’m doing it. Don’t be afraid to tell me next time, okay?” he said, and Cecil could feel his signature adorable, dorky smile against his lips as he kissed him.

“Okay,” he whispered once he pulled away. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” Carlos said. “Actually, I- well, um… Since it looks like I’ll have a bit more money from now on… I was wondering if you wanted to celebrate.”

“Of course. Where do you want to go?”

“Well, I- I was thinking…” He hesitated, then took a deep breath and said, “ _I-was-wondering-if-you-wanted-to-come-inside-with-me._ ”

 _Carlos._ “Y-Yes. Yes, I would like that very much, Carlos.”

“Good.” Carlos looked relived. “I was thinking we could watch a movie or something. Actually, I have the entire boxed set of _What_ _the Bleep Do We Know?_ if you wanted to marathon it.”

 _…What?_ “Wait– you didn’t mean…?” Carlos stared at him innocently. He didn’t. Amused, Cecil gave him another kiss as he unbuckled his seatbelt. “That sounds wonderful, Carlos.”

They’d work on it.

**Author's Note:**

> This was written for [theknightofvale](http://theknightofvale.tumblr.com), who wanted a fluffy cecilos fic. And since autistic!Carlos is my lifeblood, I couldn't resist.
> 
> My tumblr is [here](http://wearereadyforwar.tumblr.com), where I fangirl about cecilos and other Night Vale things.


End file.
